Australian Gourmet Traveller - (02)February 2020 (1)

(Comicgek) #1
ofNomainCopenhagenandMelbourne’sVuede
Monde– hasbeenintroducinga numberofinitiatives
toreducetheamountofwasteontheislandand
developmoresustainablefoodpractices.
Clingfilmhasbeenalmostcompletelybanished
fromtheisland’skitchensandhehassetupa salt
farmtoreplacetheboxedandbaggedseasalt,which
wasbeingshippedtotheresorteachweek.Healso
workedwithresortmanagementtobuilda recycling
centre,wherealloftheisland’swasteis nowseparated
andsorted.Campbell’snewesthobbyis takingthe
greenglassbottlesoncefilledwithsparklingmineral
waterandturningthemintoartisanaltumblers,
whichwillsoonberolledoutacrosstheisland’s
threerestaurants.Bottlesarealsousedtostore
grainsanddriedgoodsinthekitchenpantries.
Meanwhile,anindustrial-sizedHotRotmachine
quicklyandefficientlyturnsfoodscrapsintocompost
fortheresort’s2.2-hectareorganicfarm,which
producesalmostalloftheisland’sfreshfruitand
vegetables.Morethan 170 free-rangechickensprovide
a constantsupplyofeggstotheresort,whileCampbell
hasalsolearnttheartofbeekeeping,becomingthe
island’sresidentapiarist.
Betweenthefarm-to-tableanddock-to-dish
initiatives,Campbellestimatesaround 90 percent
oftheisland’sfoodofferingis locallysourced.In
additiontoguestsfishingfortheirdinner,where
theyregularlyhaulina deep-seacatchbigenough
tofeedmultipleguests,Campbellworkswitha
localfishermantobringinextrasupplies.Tuna,
trout,mackerel,wahoo,mahimahi,snapperand
prawnsarejustsomeofthefreshcatchonoffer
duringourstay.ThechallengeforCampbelland
headchefCarolineOakleyis continuingtocome
upwithnewwaystoserveit.
It’sa challengetheyaremorethanupto,drawing
inspiration from around the world as they showcase

a widerangeoftechniquesandflavours.Atthe
BeachShack,whereCampbelloverseesthemenu,
theofferingchangesdailywithclevertwistson
classicdishes,suchascoconutandavocadosushi,
whichseesgrated,maturecoconutreplacericein
a delicateminiaturesushiroll.
Furtheralongtheshoreline– viaa picturesque
woodenjettythattraversestheaquamarineharbour


  • youarriveat WalkerD’Plank(namedafterthe
    resort’sowner),whereyou’lldiscoverOakleyrunning
    thekitchen.TheFijian-bornchefwastaughttocook
    byherSriLankangrandmotherandbringsaninnate
    understandingandbalanceofspicetohercraft.
    Here,therearenomenus.Oakleylikestokeep
    thingslooseandwillcustomiseeverydishtoa guest’s
    personalpalate,joiningyoutablesidebeforethemeal
    toteaseoutwhatflavoursyouenjoyandthetypeof
    foodyoufeellikeeating.Beforelong,you’llbefeasting
    onsomeofyourfavouriteflavours,asa seriesofstreet
    food-inspireddisheslandonthetable.
    Andbetweencourses,you’llfindyourselfstaring
    intothehypnoticbluewatersandonceagainslipping
    intothatmostpeculiarof states: total serene and
    obscene relaxation.l


FijiAirwaysflies
directtoNadiand
Suvafromselect
Australiancities.
Privatetransfers
totheislandvia
seaplaneor
helicopterare
availablefrom
bothairports.
fijiairways.com

Stay
Privatevillas
startfrom$3245
pernightfortwo
adults,including
allmealsanda
dedicatednanny
forchildren
underthree.
kokomoisland
fiji.com

Fromtopleft:
Kokomo’sapiary;
theboardwalkto
WalkerD’Plank;
coconutsare
usedinmeals
andnaturopathy.
Opposite:the
kitchenandliving
spaceina three-
bedroom villa.

Getting
there

GOURMET TRAVELLER 133

PHOTOGRAPHY KOKOMO PRIVATE ISLAND (VILLA BEDROOM).

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